August 2005
9 posts
1 tag
Things that Should Exist
Dream Recorder
So according to physics, anything that’s an engine is also a generator. (Just run it in reverse, dummy.)
Well, I know almost nothing about the human brain, but it would be pretty cool if we could apply the generator/engine model to the visual center of the brain in order to record dreams. This, of course, relies on figuring out where dream visions differ from real visions;...
2 tags
Specialization
Today I will venture into a few areas that I see as related:
Appreciation for and learning of good writing has declined over the past 100 years in America
Time marches ever forward (ignoring, for the moment, those realities in which it does not)
The Liberal Arts education
1
I repeatedly hear those in my grandparents’ generation complaining that, “kids these days can’t...
3 tags
CSS as JSP
The Problem
I’ve been working on refactoring a project from tables to a table-less design with CSS. The stated benefit (with which I agree wholeheartedly) is that using tables for layout of non-tabular data (that is, using tables to position blocks of text) is improper because it is using the wrong tool for the job. Any artisan (woodworker, metalsmith, sculptor) would tell you this is a...
3 tags
The Dangers of Globalization
The Premise
The Diane Rehm Show hosted Barry Lynn today to discuss his book, End of the Line: The Rise and Coming Fall of the Global Corporation. Lynn was a globalization consultant for many business, and, over the years, came to believe that as our economy has become more global for the sake of efficiency (which all economists will agree is a benefit), this efficiency has come with increased...
3 tags
The Business Experiment
The Business Experiment is trying to create an open-source-style business. I like the idea (and am a member), but I have some reservations. Some critics worry that people won’t be willing to share their ideas for fear of losing out on the rewards. I’m perfectly happy to take that risk, because from all the startups I’ve tried to start, I know that the odds of actually getting...
1 tag
Consumating
“Tell me about your mother,” Consumating asked. And so I responded, but, as mentioned in the postscript, I told a lie. My mother has, in fact, never climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro.
3 tags
Businesses are Foolish
So many eBusinesses out there subscribe to the same, dumb model. They make you create an account to do the smallest thing, like email them a question. Buy.com just lost a sale because I could not email them a question. (Granted, the question was whether they would match, or even come close to a competitor’s price.)
I imagine companies require all sorts of registration so they can collect...
3 tags
Being Understood
I just reread my Plea 1, and was reminded of what happened this weekend. I had asked my friend Chelsey to come over and help me clean. She agreed, but by “help” she meant “heckle.” This actually was fine, since just having someone around to keep me on task works wonders. Bonus point one for CMR.
But to the point: at one point I had mentioned that I tend to listen to music...
2 tags
Java Notes
The best way to iterate (pre java 1.5)
for (final Iterator iter = myCollection.iterator(); iter.hasNext(); ) {
//code
}
Benefits:
forces iter to have the right scope
puts looping logic on one line (unlike while, or worse yet, do...while)
A gripe
javadoc should be able to translate < and > into < and > automatically. For actual html tags, you can just write...